JERUSALEM (Ma’an) -- Israeli authorities have approved preliminary plans to separate the East Jerusalem neighborhood of al-Issawiya from the rest of Jerusalem with cement blocks and barbed wire, Israeli radio reported.
It was unclear if the reported plan was a temporary or permanent measure.
A day earlier, Israeli forces began installing a large concrete wall in occupied East Jerusalem to separate the Palestinian neighborhood of Jabal al-Mukabbir from the illegal Israeli settlement of Armon Hanatziv.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces helped unload huge concrete blocks in the neighborhood, including the notorious T-shaped blocks used in Israel's illegal separation wall that surrounds and cuts through the occupied West Bank.
However, Israeli news site Ynet reported Monday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered that plans to erect separation barriers should be scrapped after pressure from members of the Knesset, or Israeli parliament.
The news site said that the original decision to erect a barrier to separate illegal settlements and Palestinian neighborhoods was reached over a month ago, long before the current surge in violence.
The measures are part of increased restrictions on East Jerusalem following a string of attacks.
Nearly all Palestinian neighborhoods across occupied East Jerusalem have seen severe movement restrictions imposed by Israel's security cabinet following a series of attacks on Israelis.
